Scouring pad



July 16, 1963 J. PERKOVICH SCOURING PAD Filed May 18, 1960 FIG.1

INVENTOR Mark J. Perkovich wwmoi 53214, WM 9- ATTORNEYS United fitatesPatent 3,697,387 SUFURING hAD Mark J. Perkovich, Chicago, Ill., assignorto General Foods Corporation, White Plains, N.Y., a corporation ofDelaware Filed May 18, 1960, Ser. No. 29,986 1 Claim. (Cl. 15209) Thisinvention relates to a novel scouring pad. More particularly, theinvention is concerned with a cleansing or scouring device employingmetal wool filaments, such as steel wool, which device may haveincorporated therein soap or a like saponaceous composition.

Metal wool, for example so-called steel wool, has gained wide acceptancefor scouring household articles such as pots and pans. Securing andpolishing pads made of steel wool which have been matted or feltedtogether or intertwined or interwoven into a mass of filaments, aremarketed in a variety of sizes and shapes. The form of the pads must besuch as to enable them to be easily gripped by a housewife to permit aproper scouring and polishing motion to be applied to the pads. In suchuse the pads are highly eflective.

However, it will be seen that metal wool scouring pads used while beinggrasped present several undesirable characteristics. Metal wool, itself,is harsh and unpleasant to the touch. Rusting may occur after severalimrnersions of a pad in water, and contact between the users hand andrusted, wet, metal surfaces of the pad is disagreeable. Moreover, thereis a tendency for metal wool to break or splinter, which can result inslivers of the metal entering the skin of the user.

It has, therefore, long been a problem to provide a scouring pad withmeans enabling the pad to be gripped and manipulated in the scouring andpolishing of pots and pans, such gripping means to be formed frommaterial which will have no deleterious effect on the hand of a user andnot be unpleasant to the touch. Furthermore, the gripping means must besuch that it provides an easily grasped member, such as a handle, andmust be economical to manufacture, since the gripping means will bediscarded with its expended pad. Also, the gripping means must be firmlysecured to a plurality of metal wool filaments so that through allnormal uses of the pad the gripping means will remain in place on thepad.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a scouringpad which has a handle easily grasped by the user and firmly anchored onthe pad.

it is another object of this invention to provide a scouring pad whichhas firmly 'affixed thereto gripping means formed from material which ispleasant to the touch and has no deleterious effect on the hand of auser.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a scouring padwhich has firmly secured thereto a handle that permits the pad to begrasped by one hand of a user so that no portion of that hand contactsany abrasive surface of the pad.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a scouring padhaving a handle which is relatively simple and inexpensive tomanufacture and which is secured to the pad by means of a simple anddistinctive manufacturing process.

An article or pad according to the present invention comprises a body ofmatted, interwoven, elongated, metal wool filaments, a backing with ahandle thereon, and a flexible film fused to the backing and tofilaments of the metal wool body of the pad.

The backing includes a relatively thin, flexible portion which overliesa surface portion of the body, and a handle joined to and extending awayfrom the flexible backing portion and adapted to be manually grasped. Inone distinctive embodiment the backing is formed from a isc sheet memberof relatively thin flexible material, and the handle portion of thebacking is formed from a plurality of plies of the flexible materialwhich have been joined together. The plurality of plies which form thehandle portion may be formed when a central portion of the sheet isfolded so that sheet portions adjoining the fold line are brought intoface-to-face relationship. If the entire sheet member is precoated witha plastic film activat able to a flowable condition at an increasedtemperature, the adjoining portions will be firmly fixed together uponactivation of the plastic film. In a preferred embodiment of theinvention, end portions of the backing extend away from the handle oneither side thereof and are integral with the adjoining sheet portionsthat form the plies of the centrally disposed handle. These end portionsof the backing overlie a preferably substantially planar surface portionof the body of metal wool filaments and are secured thereto by means ofthe same precoated, activat-able plastic film which serves to secure theplies of the handle to each other.

According to a distinctive feature of the invention, the backing iscomposed of flexible paper, which has a desirable amount of firmness sothat it will resist disintegration upon strenuous use. A scouring pad inwhich this feature is embodied will likewise have a handle composed oftwo plies of paper with a film or films of plastic composition disposedbetween the plies. Along those lines where the plies of the handleportion are integrally joined to the end portions of the sheet of paperthe sheet will be foldable, since it is composed of paper. In such a padthe handle portion may be folded to lie against one of the end portionsof the sheet, thereby reducing the space occupied by the pad. Suchfolding permits the juxtaposition of the handle on the backing insubstantially contiguous relation thereto during activation of theplastic film interposed between the backing and the body of filaments.This positioning greatly simplifies the apparatus which applies heat andpressure to the backing and film to activate the film and cause it tointimately contact the body of filaments. In addition, ec0nomies areeffected in the size of containers for packaging the finished pads,since each pad occupies less space when it is packaged with its handlefolded against one of the end portions of the backing.

When it is desired that the pad be utilized in a scouring operation, thehandle portion may be folded away from its adjacent end portion and maybe brought to a position substantially normal to the end portions of thesheet so that the handle is easily grasped by the fingers of a user.

It has also been found to be advantageous to provide a non-adhesivelacquer or plastic coating on'that surface of the sheet member whichwill be contacted by a hand of the user in order to further mitigate anypossibility of that hand contacting a surface which is unpleasant to thetouch. Furthermore, if the entire upper surface of the backing fromwhich the handle and end portions are formed is coated with anon-adhesive film, that film may be utilized to protect the paperbacking from disintegration or curling due to contact with water,detergents, hot fluids, and other substances with which the paper mightcome in contact during conventional household uses of the scouring pad.l

A plastic film which may be activated at increased temperatures andthereby flow is, as previously set forth herein, precoated on thatsurface of the backing which is to be brought into contact with the bodyof metal wool filaments. This film preferably has a thicknesssubstantially equal to or greater than the largest cross-sectionaldimension of the metal filaments land when activated is capable ofreceiving filament loops therein tothe extent that successive loops of aplurality of filaments will have filaments. As a result, the film andfilaments are integrally interlocked to the extent that such interlockedfilaments will be unwoven from the metal wool body should the backingfilm be pulled away therefrom and willin large measure remain anchoredto the backing.

The. character of the anchoring can be described as one wherein asubstantial plurality of the filaments at the surfaceof the body ofmatted metal wool penetrate the plastic film, emerge therefrom andreenter the film, thus lock- .ing successive loops of filaments so thatthe body of interwoven matted metal wool retains its aggregated formorshape.

To effectthis structure the plastic of which the film is composed shouldbe of high tensile strength as well as dimensional stability at least attemperatures below 140 F.; thatis, at those temperatures norm-allyencountered in household use. At such temperatures the plastic filmshould also remain relatively inert to the action of alkalis,

hotwater and soaps, and should be non-toxic, odorless and of suchflexibility that, at the thickness required for proper interlocking offilament loops, the film alone or in combination with a backing sheet ofpaper, foil, woven fabrics or the like will be flexible in use.

The mass of metal wool is preferably composed of elongated filaments ofsteel, which filaments are inter- .twined or interwoven more or lessrandomly with respect to oneanother. The metal wool preferably also hasintcorporated therein some form of soap or saponaceous compositionwhichserves as a lubricant as well as a deter- ;gent effecting appropriatescouring and polishing of pots "and; pans and similar articles.;commercial practices, the metal wool mass can be assent-bled into asuitable pad having an oval or rectangular =outlineandcan be of acompressible, springy nature such that it will yield upon theapplication of pressure when the plastic film is being activated andinterlocked with the metal wool filaments. yprefer-ably plane on thatside of the pad which is to re- ;ceive the plasticfilm, but may berounded or sloping, 1 'particularly near the marginal edges of the pad.

In accord with present The surface of the pad is :Thefilm may becomposed of any suitable, activatable plastic which lends itself toliquefaction through the action 20f. heat or a solvent, the plasticmelting so that it receives filament loops within the plastic film andthen solidifies xtocensure interlocking. Although well-known adhesiveresinscan be activatedby use of such solvents as hot .acetone and methylethyl ketone, such adhesive resins and :Lthe solvents therefor are lesspreferred since their use ,uintroducesproblems of solvent recovery andsafety control. It is preferred to employ heat-activated adhesives thatheatcan be applied to the free film, preferably :throu'gh the backing;upon melting, the composition formingthe free film will rapidly transferits heat to the metal The film is preferably integrated with sheetmaterial 1 having properties usually found in fibrous cellulosicmaterialor paper, i.e., flexibility and tendency to absorb quantities ofplastic resins applied thereto. Although paper .in the common or usualsense means a material .made fromsuch sources as wood, rag, or Bagasse(sugar cane),.a broader interpretation of the term paper is intendedherein, the term being understood to include such kindred materials asartificial and natural textile fibers 4 which are matted and woven. Alsoincluded in the term, paper, are composite structures. made bylaminating such paper or paper-like compositions to other sheets such asplastic films, metal foil and the like, which may be relied upon tooffer an attractive appearance either through an applied design or theappearance of the material itself. As a rule, the paper backing sheetfor use in combination with the backing film will be one capable ofbeing printed and will range in weight from 8-90 lbs, preferably about45 lbs. (basis 24 x 36-, 500:3,000 sq. ft).

Various kinds of paper that can be used are: papers made from chemicalpulps including sulphate papers, sulphite paper, sulphate-sulphitecombination papers, soda pulp papers, these various papers being eitheruncoated or coated on one or both sides with a coating comprising clay,titanium dioxide, and binder; papers made from chemical pulp or chemicalpulp and igroundwood combinations, coated or uncoated, which have beencalendered or supercalendered, such as publishing papers, glassine,supercalendered sulphite papers, machine finish sulphitesulphate papers,and machine finish and machine glazed sulphite-sulphate papers, andother materials such as cellulosic films including cellophane andcellulose acetate, foil and the like.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will become more apparent when taken in connection with thefollowing detailed description and the illustration of a preferredembodiment of the invention in the accompanying drawings, which form apart hereof, and in which:

FIG. l is a side elevational view of a scouring pad according to theinvention with a backing secured thereto;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the scouring pad of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the pad, taken along the line 33of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of a backing and filmaccording to the invention.

Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGS. 1 to 3thereof, the film 10, which is composed of a plastic composition thatflows at increased temperatures, is illustrated in a position betweenand contiguous with a backing 12 and a body 13 of metal wool filaments.Plastic film '10 is secured to the backing 12 and to successive loops ofa plurality of filaments of the body 13, thereby interlocking thebacking 12 and the body 13 and maintaining those parts of the scouringpad in the relative positions shown in FIGS. 1 to 3.

To ensure a firm anchoring of the backing 12 to the body 13 through theintermediation of plastic film 10, a substantially planar portion 15 isformed on one surface of the body 13. During manufacture of a finishedpad according to this invention, planar portion 15 provides a surfaceagainst which the backing 12 is pressed, and con tact between the film10 on the backing 12 and planar surface portion '15 is achieved over theentire area of the film available for such contact.

Plastic film 10 serves a function in addition to interlocking thebacking l2 and body 13. As best seen in FIG. 4, central film portions 20and 22 lie intermediate central backing portions 16 and '18 when thebacking 13 has been folded to provide a handle 14 and end portions 30and 32, which are integral with central backing portions 16 and 18 andextend at approximately right angles away from such portions. Where endportions 34 and 36 of the film 10 underlie backing end portions 30 and32, the film serves to bond the backing '12 to the body 16; wherecentral film portions 20 and 22 are interposed between central backingportions 16 and 18, the film serves to bond central backing portions 16and 18 to each other to form handle 14.

According to the present invention, the entire sheet from which thebacking 12 and handle 14 are formed may be precoated with an even layerof film 10 over one complete surface thereof. The sheet is then folded,as best illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, to bring adjoining centralportions 16 and 18 of the backing 12 into face-to-face relationship andto cause central film portions 20 and 22 to be brought into abuttingposition. As a result of such folding, end portions 3% and 32 of thebacking 12 are disposed to form a substantially continuous plane surfaceprovided with a substantially continuous layer of film on one sidethereof, such layer being formed from film end portions 34 and 36. Whenso folded, the plastic film may either have central film portions 20 and22. activated at that time in order to permanently form handle 14, orcentral film portions 26 and '22 may be activated simultaneously withthe activation of the end film portions 34 and 36 to secure the backing12 to the body 13.

It will be observed that when the backing 12 is made from paper or othermaterial which is flexible, folding the sheet of paper into a handle 14and end portions 30 and 32 will be facilitated. To ensure maintenance ofa sub stantially continuous film it after the sheet member has beenfolded in the form best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, the film is prefer-ablyformed from an elastic material which will not crack or chip upon beingmanipulated. When a film of such composition is utilized, it will bepossible to freely fold the handle 14 against either of backing endportions 30 or 32, even after the plastic film '10 has been activated.Such folding makes possible the temporary pressing of the handle 14against an end portion of the backing 12 as the novel scouring pad ofthe present invention is inserted into a container. This ioldabilitythus becomes an advantageous economic factor, since the entire spaceoccupied by the pad of the invention is substantially reduced when thehandle 14 is disposed contiguous to one of the backing end portions 30and 32. When it is desired to use the scouring pad as a householdarticle, the handle 14 is again brought to a position substantiallynormal to the backing end portions 30 and 32 to provide a member whichis easily grasped by one hand of the user.

Advantageously, the body 13 is formed from a plurality of metal woolfilaments which are interwoven or intertwined with one another and notmerely matted or felted together. When the backing 12 is laminated to abody of matted filaments, the force exerted on the filaments during ascouring operation may be suflicient to cause an entire outer layer ofthese filaments to be pulled from underlying filament layers. In thisevent the backing 12 is either completely disassociated from the mainbody 13 of filaments or else dislocated with respect to the body so thateffective scouring action cannot be obtained by grasping the backingalone.

e use of interwoven or intertwined filaments, on the other hand, resultsin a laminated structure in which the backing 12, film 1t! and body '13are united in a manner which enables the structure to resistdisintegration under the application of forces such as those which arisein the course of a scouring operation. Interwoven or inter twinedfilaments have been found to have greater positional stability withrespect to other filaments of the body. In addition, a force in adirection which might tend to loosen or unravel one or more filaments ofa body of intertwined filaments will merely serve to enhance thestability of other adjacent filaments. Thus the unraveling action of amultiplicity of forces on an interwoven or intertwined body will beunlikely to afiect a suflicient number of filaments at any one time tocause disintegration of the body 13.

It will be understood that the terms interwoven or intertwined as usedheretofore to described the structure and arrangement of the metalfilaments which form the body 13, are intended to have a broader meaningthan that normally ascribed to a Woven structure. Thus, the filaments ofthe body are not limited to a composite formation in which they extendin two directions only, as is conventional in other woven fabrics, butextend in more or less random relationship to each other. The filamentsare intermingled so that they form a mass which is not easily unraveled.A body of filaments according to the present invention may be formed byrolling a metal wool strand upon itself to form a ball, the direction ofconvolution being varied at intervals during the balling of thematerial. After the steel wool has been rolled into a ball, it is thencompacted to form the interwoven or intertwined filament body of thepresent invention.

While the present invention has been described with particular referenceto a specific embodiment thereof, it will be understood that theinvention is not to be limited by that embodiment, but its scope is tobe defined only by reference to the following appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A scouring pad, comprising a body of matted interwoven elougated metalwool filaments having a substantially planar surface portion formed fromsaid filaments, a backing including a continuous sheet of relativelythin flexible material adjoining central portions of which are foldedinto face-to-face relationship to form a handle, flat end portions ofsaid sheet extending on either side of said handle and overlying saidsurface portion of said body, and a flexible film of high tensilestrength and dimensional stability at temperatures below F. preooated onone side of said sheet and activatable at increased temperatures, saidfilm having been activated and thereby holding together said adjoiningcentral portions of said handle, said film having a thickness greaterthan the diameter of said filaments at said surface portion and by saidactivation being fused to said end portions of said sheet andsurrounding and being fused to a plurality of said filaments at saidsurface portion of said body to interlock said body and said backing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,646,835 Gottesman July 28, 1953 2,735,721 Rafferty Feb. 21, 19562,885,703 Elliott May 12, 1959 2,938,223 Horowitz May 31, 1960 FOREIGNPATENTS 4,609 Great Britain Aug. 19, 1915 607,525 France Mar. 27, 1926751,226 France June 12, 1933

